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\u201cPysanky eggs always caught my imagination with their mystery and magic,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen I\u2019m at art fairs and children see the eggs, you see that wonder. I love seeing my work through their eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rogocki grew up in England. Her father immigrated from Poland before she was born, and Rogocki saw pysanky on the Easter postcards sent from their family there.<\/p>\n
She attended art college and received her Master\u2019s, specializing in installation work, mixed media, and site-specific pieces. (Some of this work even incorporated eggshells.) But it was her own immigration journey that led her back to pysanky.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t until I came to the U.S., where the Ukrainian and Polish immigrants had established their cultures and communities here, that made it accessible,\u201d she says. \u201c[Growing up,] we didn\u2019t really celebrate that heritage. I wanted to raise my children with those connections.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Inspired by masters like Detroit-based Roman Seniuk, Rogocki started applying her art skills to eggs, moving through \u201cclumsy beginnings\u201d to learn precise techniques generations in the making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A landmark in her career was the chance to learn from Helen Badulak, author of Pysanky in the 21st Century <\/em>and one of the country\u2019s foremost pysanky masters. Badulak invited Rogocki and her family to stay at her Pennsylvania home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\u201cAs my mentor, she gave me tools, materials, and photos of eggs in her museum collection for me to continue to practice and to be inspired by,\u201d says Rogocki. One lesson she learned from Badulak: don\u2019t be afraid to push traditional art into new terrain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n \n\n
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\n\n\n\n<\/g>\n\n\n\n<\/clipPath>\n<\/defs>\n<\/svg> Photo Credit: Petra Daher \/ Arts Midwest<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \u201cThe other thing I like about working with eggs is that you build relationships with the people you source materials from,\u201d says Rogocki. \u201cMine is with local farmers. To become part of that community too is a delight.\u201d\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n \n \n
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\n\n\n\n<\/g>\n\n\n\n<\/clipPath>\n<\/defs>\n<\/svg> Photo Credit: Petra Daher \/ Arts Midwest<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \u201cI want [my pysanky] to be able to communicate to people, with regard to past beliefs in the beauty of nature,\u201d says Jozefa Rogocki. \u201cI\u2019ve often thought [people] would be drawn to the more traditional, but my own eggs are very popular,\u201d she adds.\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n \n \n
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\n\n\n\n<\/g>\n\n\n\n<\/clipPath>\n<\/defs>\n<\/svg> Photo Credit: Petra Daher \/ Arts Midwest<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \u201cI find this a very meditative process. It stills me,\u201d says Jozefa Rogocki. \u201cThat\u2019s the process I go through, why I love to make them when I\u2019m alone. I can\u2019t make straight lines if I\u2019m talking to people!\u201d\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n \n \n
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\n\n\n\n<\/g>\n\n\n\n<\/clipPath>\n<\/defs>\n<\/svg> Photo Credit: Petra Daher \/ Arts Midwest<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n Jozefa Rogocki creates original designs alongside traditional ones, drawing on imagery from Poland\u2019s pre-Christian roots.\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n \n \n
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\n\n\n\n<\/g>\n\n\n\n<\/clipPath>\n<\/defs>\n<\/svg> Photo Credit: Petra Daher \/ Arts Midwest<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n Jozefa Rogocki shares pysanky techniques at community workshops, art fairs, and cultural festivals.\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n <\/div>\n\n
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